The Sixteenth Quarter Quell
by TheSkaterBlonde
Summary: Matt Hollister, seventeen, find himself pulled into the 400th Annual Hunger Games, volunteering for a twelve-year-old boy who was pulled at the drawing. Matt will have to battle the Quarter Quell, a dead cycle that occurs ever 25 years, where the game is changed. This Quell, each district must send three boys and girls into the same Arena. Info inside. Rated T, Cursing,
1. Summary

**The Quarter Quell**  
** A Hunger Games FanFiction**  
** Written by TheSkaterBlonde**  
** Inspired by Suzanne Collins "The Hunger Games" Trilogy**

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**Summary**

In the ruins of the once great nation of Australia, now stands the glimmering country of Fenfaria, ally to the surviving countries of Panem and Abalya. The Time of Revolt spread across the world like an infection through the three civilized countries. After the revolts and revolutions, two of the three, Panem and Fenfaria allies wanted to punish their districts. After long debates and struggles, their sentence was finally crafted: The Hunger Games. A fight to the death watched on Live TV. The annual games requires the District of one boy and girl between the ages of twelve and eighteen to fight to their death until one lone victor stands above all others. Even after the country of Panem revolutionized, Fenfaria continued their games as the Capitol watched for their enjoyment.  
Seventeen-year-old Matt Hollister find himself pulled into the 400th Annual Hunger Games, volunteering for a twelve-year-old boy who was pulled at the drawing. Matt will have to battle the Quarter Quell, a dead cycle that occurs ever twenty-five years, where the game is changed. This Quell, each district must send three boys and girls into the same Arena. Let the 400th annual Hunger Games begin, and may the odds be ever in your favour.


	2. Chapter One

_The Quarter Quell_  
_ A Hunger Games FanFiction_  
_ Written by TheSkaterBlonde_  
_ Inspired by Suzanne Collins "The Hunger Games"_

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_**Chapter One**_

A small breeze blows quietly off of clear ocean waters, dancing through the air until reaching the huge tree house where the story begins. Creeping through the second floor, and to where a group of four sleeps. Lying asleep, Matt Hollister sleeps peacefully without dreams. On both sides of him, however, his brother and sister cling to him as they mumble in their tormented sleep, plagued by nightmares. Today would be a hard day for both of them. Forced to watch their older brother go to the reaping where his name is already in the Reaping Bowl sixty-three times.

When Matt woke up, heat burned his bare chest on both sides. His arms found his brother and sister, who were clinging tightly to his waist. They always climbed into this hammock when they had nightmares, but he knew their reason they were both here. Today was Reaping Day. The cool ocean breeze came through the small makeshift window, caring the sound of the breaking morning surf.

Today already hinted it would be a long day. The sun had barely started to rise above the hazy horizon, and the sift was starting to gather in strength when Matt finally sat up. Areah was crying silently in her sleep, shifting herself down to clutch Matt's left when he sat up. She squeezed his leg every time their brother, Blideth mumbled in his own sleep. Her eyes flew open and bore into Matt when he began to climb out of the hammock bed.

"It's today, isn't it?" She asked the question in a small voice that seemed to physically tear a nerve in Matt with every word. He delivered her a fake grin and kissed her forehead to attempt to cheer her up.

"Don't worry, Are. In a couple of hours, we'll be sitting back watching the sunset." Matt spoke in a calm voice, hiding his own fear in a smooth mask. Blideth started to mutter in his sleep again when Matt gentle carried his brother from Matt's fish-netted hammock, and placed him into his smaller and more comfortable hammock. "I am going to get breakfast. Try and get some sleep. And tonite, we'll eat like were Gods." Matt let out a small laugh. A genuine laugh. Areah nodded and crawled back under the blankets, trying desperately to hide from today.

Reaping Day. It was finally here, and Matt was filled with worry. His name was in the drawing bowl sixty-three times. The day anyone turns twelve in the fourteen districts, one ticket with your name carefully written on it is placed into the drawing bowl. At thirteen, they add another one, and so forth. The last year you are eligible to play the game is when you're eighteen, and you will have your name in the drawing bowl at least seven times. But there is a catch. Your name can be added into the bowl more than seven times. A years supply of Oil and Grain Tesserae may be collected, at the small cost of your name being added another time. The poor families in the districts often have a higher chance to be pulled.

After Matt's died, he was left to fend for his siblings and himself, barely the age of fourteen. It was a year after they died, they finally found a place to make a home. The small tree house took a year to build, stealing wood from the supply centre in River Town. They carefully chose their spot, but it practically stumbled onto them. It sat in front of the forest, where a fresh water waterfall spring sat. It was near the ocean, their main source of food, but Matt still had to get Tesserae.

Matt slowly moved out of the half of the tree house they slept in, and walked into the small area they kept their possessions. Each of them had an area, and Matt's body wet suit hung on a hook waiting to be worn. Matt's father had bought it for him for his birthday, before he died, to go fishing in during the cold months when the water was colder. That day was somewhat of a laughing joke. Matt's father bought the suit, thinking Matt would already be grown enough to wear it. But when he tried it on, it was to small. It was not a few months after the explosion that killed Matt's parents that he could finally wear it. Matt slid out of his under shorts and slid into the suit. It clung to his body, following all the curves of his lean swimmers muscles.

Matt moved back towards the sleeping room, and out onto a small covered porch, and climbed down the ladder. They had made the tree house complex, but still small for their needs. The tree was born before the Dark Ages, when the world was in ruins, and had survived until now. It spanned far and high and had a huge centre area, perfect for their house. They had a sleeping area that had their three beds, with an extra one for any of Matt's friends to sleep in. Behind the sleeping area, a small room for their possessions rested. There was a small porch that the tree. A small kitchen area, which was not too large, sat towards the forest side of the ground floor.

One of the hardest problems for the Matt's small family was water. It was almost a year ago when Areah came home carrying hollow bamboo. She had just turned twelve, barely missing the date for the Hunger Games Reaping. She went out of her way to get her first and only Tesserae Token to trade for the bamboo. After days of working, she had created a system that carried the water from the small waterfall in the forest to three places in their small house: the kitchen, the small bathing house, and Areah's garden. The rest of the ground floor facing the forest side of the house was a living area where they usually sat and rested, talking or reading. These areas actually had walls to keep away from the weather.

The rest of the ground floor faced the ocean side, where they had a large porch. An open eating area was on the porch, near the door leading into the kitchen. The small family enjoyed the sunset, because it was their parents favourite time of day, which they honoured whenever they could. Behind the tree house, just barely into the forest, was a small garden Areah planted. It was filled with fruits and vegetables that she had managed to grow. The last area of their small claimed outpost sat further into the forest, their bathhouse. It also had a restroom that sat right over a creek that eventually joined others as they made their way into the river River Town sits on.

A soft breeze blew through, licking Matt's swim suit. The seagulls were beginning to stir, looking for food to scavenge. The sand felt soft under Matt's feet as he walked towards the ocean. The surf broke onto the shore and he was given a small taste of the waters. It was going to be warm today, but the bounty of food was worth the time to not take off the swim suit. And after a long morning of spear fishing, Matt slowly climbed back to shore holding with a total of thirteen fat fish, feeling immensely lucky.

Areah was awake from the sight of smoke from behind the tree house. They had agreed they they wanted to avoid the tree house from catching fire. It was young Blideth who found a place where they would cook their meats and the idea of how. It took ten tokens of Tesserae to pay for the bricks, and a large amount of fruit gathered from Areah's garden to trade for grill metal. Just a day after gathering their supplies, they had a grill to cool on with plenty of fuel to gather in the forest. For orphans who lived illegally, they had a good life. Their brains had gotten them this far, with a jackpot of luck.

Areah had started her daily chores: starting a fire, gathering some fruits and vegetables from her garden, and getting their brother ready for the day. She carried a woven basket use to belong their their mother, towards the garden as she sang to herself. The garden, though small, was impressive. It was built around a Banana Tree, a strawberry bush that only now has began producing the red fruit, with a few other fruits with loads of vegetables that helped them survive so easily. Matt hung the fish on the branch above the stove and slide out of his body suit. His arms lightly burned from the excessive spear fishing.

Matt slowly walked to the small spring, not wanting to bath in the bathhouse. The forest came alive has he quietly walked along the sand path. Squirrels moved across the forest floor, stopping ever so often to look around. The ground around the path began to become more lush, and the soil became moist. A break in the forest opened to a small clearing with a spring at the bottom of a waterfall that turned into the creek that flowed under the bathhouse. Areah's bamboo transport was at the very fall of the water, and carried the water at a slight slope toward the house. All carefully placed, but sturdy. Matt began to walk into the cold water, feeling the fresh water clean the salt away.

This was like any other day. Waking up to a beautiful clear day, going spear fishing till Matt began to feel the burn in his arms, going to the spring. But today there was something very different, something very dark. The Reaping. Worry twisted in Matt's stomach, making him more nervous then ever before. The Hunger Games officially started today, beginning with the Reaping. And to make things worse, it was Areah's first reaping. Her name would be in there two different times. Matt had made her promise to never go again, even if it met placing his name in there more. After hours of arguing, she finally agreed, swearing that she would never forgive him if he was placed into the games.

He sat there in the spring, as he waited for his friends who lived near to join him for a swim. It was not long before Cal and Tide walked out of the forest with grim faces, talking in hushed voices.

"Happy Hunger Hames." Tide said, stripping from his under shorts.

"And may the odds be ever in your favour." Cal finished, already in the water. The waterfall poured lightly onto Matt's head, taking the rest of the Saltwater from his hair. "Nervous?" Cal asked, knowing Matt's extensive amount of name placed in the drawing. Matt nodded and sighed, it was going to be a very long day. "If I go in…" Cal began to speak again but his voice trailed off as he glazed toward the path leading to his house.

"We'll take care of them." Matt said looking toward his own home.

"Hell ya, we would. But, for now, try not to think of it." Tide finally said. Matt nodded and a genuine laugh echoed behind the waterfall. They knew laughing was better then sulking. Tide joined in the laughing and splashed Matt in the face. It began a full out war between the three, splashing water back and forth before tiring out.

It should be like that every day, but the ordinary day would be changed at two o'clock. The Capitol had already read out the Quarter Quell changes months ago, and it now the odds were not in Matt's favour. Every twenty-five years, a change to the Games happen. Hundreds of years ago, the Capitol sat down and wrote the game changes for the Quarter Quell to last for the next thousand years. Last Quell, the Tributes could not say goodbye to their families. Time before, the Tributes were not permitted to train for the games. But every hundred years, the game is drastically changed. This Quell required that, instead of the normal two Tributes from each district, six must be offered. Three boys, three girls. Forty-two Tributes. And only three may win. Three. Just three.  
"So, this Quell… Think we stand a chance?" Matt asked leaning against a smooth rock that had already absorbed some warmth. Cal and Tide just shrugged casually, still not wanting to think of the thought.

"Six fucking tributes. It's sick." Tide yelled the phrase at the top of his voice, but the waterfall would have caught the most of it. Even so, a chill still ran up Matt's spine. The shock of hearing about it months ago was still fresh. Matt remember running and his long strides drove him home. Everything and everyone he passed seemed to become silent in a mixture of fear and anger. He remembers only three colours from that day. Everything had turned red, white, and black. When he arrived at his home, the their tree house, Matt found Areah and Blideth sitting at the table they had bought the month earlier. They both stared at him with a mixture of confusion and fear, like something was wrong. When he told Areah, he held her ground, and just asked one question. 'What about Blideth?' That is how she was. Herself never came first, but her brother.

"Hey, I think I am going to head home to get dressed." The words came from Matt's lips in a neutral tone. The weight of the day had been easy to ignore until now. The two just nodded and went back to cleaning themselves. Despite the soft sand under his feet, all the animals he passed fell silent, like the time when he found out about the Quell. They just stared. When Matt arrived to the garden, he was in a state of autopilot. He moved into the kitchen to find it lifeless.

"Matty! Is that you?" Blideth's voice yelled from behind the doorway into the open dinning area of the porch. The voice itself was filled with excitement, and Matt could already imagine Blideth jumping up and down.

"Sure is, buddy." Matt entered to find fresh fruits cut up in a wooden bowl, cooked fish, and near fresh cheese that Matt had traded three fat fish and a small basket of strawberries for a pound of cheese from the bakery. Truthfully, it was a pathetic trade, but the baker has a special spot from our strawberries. "Looks good, Are."

"Well, you better eat quickly. We still have to get ready and get to the Stage by noon." Areah's voice mimicked their mothers stern voice, demanding Matt listen to her. She was right, though. It was nearing ten and would take them about thirty minutes to get there.

"Alright, alright. Take Blideth to the bathhouse and clean yourselves up. I am going to eat quickly and get dressed. Blideth will be staying with Cal's house while we are at the Reaping, okay?" Areah simple nodded and Blideth and herself left the dining area to go bath.

Matt began eating, eating plenty to fill himself to last until he went fishing again this he came back. The odds were not in their favour. And the worst part, Matt, Cal, Tide, and Areah could go into the games. That was the worst of the fear. Before he even finished eating, Areah appeared in front of Matt. "I need to talk to you, Matty." Before he could even reply, she was moving toward the breaking surf, with frustration on her brow. Cal and Tide had just arrived, already dressed for the Reaping. But they were not heading toward Matt. They were heading to the bathhouse. Areah must have weaselled them into watching over Blideth.

Matt's legs seemed to drag across the sand when he made his way toward his sister, and the list of reasons why were endless. Areah was sitting on a small bench they had made to stare out at the sunset, another reminder of their parents. Blideth and Tide had sat down at the table while Cal climb he ladder to what Matt was guessing was to get Blideth a change of clothes.

"Areah…" Matt did not know how to comfort her. That was always a hard spot for him. But she was so strong, hardly anything tipped her scales. They both sat their in silence, feeling the cool ocean breeze role over the ocean. Seagulls flew over, lightly riding the wind. A perfect day. The perfect breeze, the perfect waves, everything was perfect, and yet, everyone in Fenfaria would be in a horrible mood. Today should not be beautiful and perfect, the world should be dark and grey. Matt was staring at her now, waiting for her to tell him what was wrong, yet all she could do was frown.

"The Quarter Quell… The Game Change… what are we going to do…" She trailed off and sat their a moment. She was staring down at her hands. The same horror they registered in her eyes when Matt originally told her had returned, making the bright blue eyes the small family shared turn into the look of a wild animal that has been startled. "What if… What if we are both chosen?" The question was completely void of emotion, and her eyes turned from her hands and looked toward their brother. Blideth was laughing at Cal, who was dancing in an odd way. For a seven year old, he was smart but so easily distracted. He did not deserve this life, hell, none of them did. But Matt just left it at that, afraid of thoughts of rebellion that would only end in the death of him. Tide was staring out toward the ocean, like he was waiting for a way to leave. He constantly talked about going to the Wastelands, a distant land off the shores of the other side of Fenfaria. We are told only Barbarians live there, but there are rumours. But his point was valid. We would all be free there.

"Tide and Cal will take care of him." The words were smooth as quicksilver from Matt, trying desperately to stop his sister from worrying. But, of course, she saw right though his pathetic attempt.

"But they could be chosen too! We all could! Then their families will die too! You know their families barely have enough to feed their own! Why would they feed Blideth!" Areah was yelling now, and the three sitting on the porch turned towards the two, hearing bits and pieces. Cal's face turned to a frown. Matt and Cal knew that Cal's family would feed Blideth, even if they lost the games. His family were the ones who helped them from day one after the death of their parents. Tide's face was a mask though. His parents forced him to get his own food, and he often stayed at the tree house. But he knew his family would not take care of Blideth. Just another mouth to feed. But Blideth's face was the worst. He clearly knew he the reason for the discussion. It must have went over his head, because he turned to Cal and said something. Cal broke into laughter and started dancing again, but Tide kept his glaze on the two for a little longer and then turned back to stare out to the ocean.

"You know Cal's family will take care of him." Matt whispers were nearly to speaking normally and were filled with rage. Areah's eyes fell on the ground, accepting this. "I am sorry. Let's just get ready for the Reaping, and then, when we get back, we can celebrate when we are not chosen." Matt said this smiling, stressing on a few words to bring his sister from the depths of anger and worry. It was a weak and desperate smile though. With a small nod and a smile weaker then her brothers, they slowly rose and made their way back.

"May the odds be ever in our favour." A sarcastic whisper spoken more to herself as they neared their tree house. A million thoughts ran through Matt's head. But only one stopped all the rest. Here he was freaking out about being chosen, when he should be thinking about what would happen when they were not chosen. Things would simply go on. Matt would simply continue fishing, swimming, and hanging out with his friends. He would go to Cal's house to see if the chosen Tributes were winning and go on his life.

Matt nodded, not to anyone in particular. Just to himself, like he was already agreeing with the though. He simply was not going to be chosen.

They were all sitting in the living room, waiting on Areah to come downstairs. All of the boys were wearing the same outfit: a thick white button up, khaki shorts, and comfortable brown rubber flip-flops. All the clothes came straight from the Capitol, as a gift to the District. Being one of the more productive Districts, they often were given gifts. Just random things: a couple complete outfits for everyone to have, more food, and other things. The month before the Reaping, they were giving each person three new outfits, and it was highly recommended we wear one of our gifts to the Reaping. Tide had cut the sleeves of his shift off and Cal had pushed his up, which Matt's were rolled up. It was nearly an hour before noon and they were getting worried.

"Think you two could take Blideth to your house, Cal? I am going to try and see what is taking so long with Areah." Cal and Tide both nod and innocent little Blideth waves with a big grin. Matt began to climb the wooden ladder nailed into the trunk of the wall, staring to climb up the wall of the living area and toward the upstairs porch. The porch actually is the reinforced part of the roof that covered over the living room, so you could easily save wood. The hatch above the ladder pushed up to open onto the porch, and Matt quickly climbed out. The bedroom was empty, though, when Matt passed through it.

Areah was found in the possession room, sitting in front of a white dress their mother had worn when she was very young. A forever ago, when it was Matt's first reaping, his Father had given him a bracelet weaved tightly of bright coloured strings, sitting on a soft leather. The bracelet had metal fastenings, so Matt instantly knew it was valuable. He leaned down to him, with a smile and said 'Even when you think the world is going bleak and without hope, just remember this. It will always bring you luck.' When their parents had died, Matt gathered as much as he could of their possessions. But after three years, most of the things he saved were sold or ruined. All except a few clothes there Matt went out of his way to save. The white dress was one of their mothers favourite childhood dresses, and Matt wanted Areah to wear it. But all it did was remind her of painful memories of their parents.

Matt walked in and smiled sadly. "You know it was her favourite." It sounded like a statement more then a question, as he sat down on his feet in front of her.  
"I know, just should I wear it to something… Something like this?" Areah's glaze fell onto Matt's face when she spoke the last bit, as if trying to find some thing hidden behind his eyes. The Reaping was something that nobody deserved. But even though it was a horrible thing.

"It shouldn't but I bet you'll feel safe, like your in Mums arms again." Matt spoke quietly, trying to uplift her spirits.

"You're right. Are you going to wear it?" She was referring to the Bracelet he was already wearing. All of the strings were weaved upward, going toward my shoulder. The bracelet was only over two centimetres. Matt slowly rose, buttoning his bracelet again to make it tighter. His shirt was clean and without stains. In perfect condition. It looked perfect with the khaki shorts the Capitol made for District Fourteen. Sometimes, it is not to bad getting gifts.

A couple of minutes later, Areah and Matt were climbing down to the ground floor. There, to their surprise, they found Jak's Mum sitting in the living room. "I love this place. It is so nice." She said everything with smiles. Her two younger children were sitting on the floor, playing a game with their fingers. They were explaining the game to Blideth, who sat next to them. "I thought we would come here, to get away from the TV." The message was clear. She wanted a place where she could control the little ones if they did end up in the games.

"Thank you, Mrs. Abercrombie. It means a lot that you are going to watch over him. And if we do…" The sentence fell short, but she still nodded.

"He'll be taken perfect care of, they both will." Mrs. Abercrombie was looking at Areah. "You wouldn't mind if we stayed here if you are chosen, to make sure nothing happens? Do you?" Her voice was cautious, playing with what she thought would be a landmine.

"Not at all." Matt turned to Cal, who was leaning against the door frame. "Ready?"

Cal nodded grinning. "Let's hope our luck isn't as bad as we think it is." Cal laughed as he spoke, walking out onto the porch. Tide was sitting in a chair at the table. He rose to his feet, and came to give the three of us hugs.

"Cannot get emotional in front of all the camera's, not can we?" Another grin, though this one was from Tide.

One hour later, the four were in River Town, walking into the Square. Attendance was required by everyone in the River Region and every teenager in District Fourteen between twelve and eighteen, unless you were on Death's door step. Tonite, the Peacekeepers will check on the missing attendance and arrest anyone who was skipping out. People slowly fill into the massive square, signing in as they enter. The Capitol used the Reaping to keep tabs on the Districts Populations, but a lot of the people were in the adjacent streets or in different Regions of the District are miscounted. A lot of the Region will be watching from the streets where they can find Capitol TV's that the Peacekeepers had set up earlier. The twelve through eighteen year olds were placed in roped off areas marked off by ages. The oldest in the front and the youngest in the back. There was a small gap between the crowd and all of us. Matt pushed Areah to her area, but gave her a kiss on the forehead beforehand. "Good luck." It was all Matt could say and his smile was genuine. She moved back to hug him tightly until the Peacekeepers began lining up, alerting it was time for the Drawing.

The just past the perimeter of the ropes were families, holding tightly to one another's hands. But there were others too, who have no one they love at stake, or who no longer care, who slip among the crowd, taking bets on the two kids whose names will be drawn. Odds are given on their ages, whether they are from River, Ocean, or Lake Region, if they'll break down and weep. Most refuse dealing with the racketeers carefully. These same people tend to be the informers, and who hasn't broken the law?

The space in the seventeen-year old pin is tight, filled with the stench of nervous sweat. All of the teenagers exchange nods and then focus their attention on the temporary stage that is set up before the Justice Building. It holds four chairs, a podium, and two large glass balls, one for the boys and one for the girls. Matt's bright blue eyes stared at the paper slips in the boys ball. Sixty-three of them have Matt Hollister written on them in careful hand writing.

All four of the chairs begin to fill. First with the Mayor of River Town, Mayor Florence, who is a short, fat man. Behind him is Bonus Redpath, District 14's escort, fresh from the Capitol with her scary white grin, greenish hair, and ocean blue dress. Just behind her are District 14's past Victors, who are brave enough to help train the District's Tributes that are chosen in the Reaping. The Male Victor is Whytt Fontaine. The younger of the two, Whytt is just twenty-one. Still fresh to the Victor Pool. He shares the Ocean Region look: tanned skin, fit, bright blue eyes. But his hair is the mismatched part. A dark brown. A trait from the Lake Region. The Female Victor is Briar Selshoot. She is fairly young looking for her age. She was the victor from the last Quarter Quell at the young age of thirteen. She looked to be completely from the River Region. Light, brown hair and grey eyes. For a thirty-eight year old, she looked closer ten years younger.

Just as the town clock stroke noon, the mayor steps up to the podium and begins to read. It's the same story every year. He tells the history of Fenfaria, the country that rose from the ashes of a place that was once called Australia. He lists the disasters, the droughts, the storms, the earthquakes, the fires, the encroaching seas that swallowed so much of the land, the brutal war for what little sustenance remained. The result was Fenfaria, a shining Capitol ringed by sixteen outlying districts, which brought peace and prosperity to its citizens. Then came the Dark Days, the uprising of the districts against the Capitol. Fourteen were defeated, two obliterated. The Treaty of Treason, the same treat used in Panem, gave us the new laws to guarantee peace and, as our yearly reminder that the Dark Days must never be repeated, it gave us the Hunger Games.

The rules of the Hunger Games are simple. In punishment for the uprising, each of the fourteen districts must provide one girl and one boy, called tributes, to participate. The twenty-eight tributes will be imprisoned in a vast outdoor arena that could hold anything from a burning desert to a frozen wasteland. Over a period of several weeks, the competitors must fight to the death. The last tribute standing wins. Except for this year, the Quarter Quell. Where the districts must offer three boys and girls, where there will be eighty-four tributes. Whoever goes in has a small chance of surviving.

Taking the kids of the districts, forcing them to kill another while we watch - this is the Capitol's way of reminding us how totally we are at their mercy. How little change we would stand of surviving another rebellion. Whatever words they use, the real message is clear. "Look how we take your children and sacrifice them and there's nothing you can do. If you lift a finger, we will destroy every last one of you. Just like we did with what use to be District Seven and District Sixteen."

To make it humiliating as well as torturous, the Capitol requires the Districts to treat the Hunger Games as a festivity, a sporting event pitting every district against the others. The last tribute alive receives a life of ease back home, and their district will be showered with prizes, largely consisting of food. All year, the Capitol will show the winning district gifts of grain and oil and even delicacies like sugar while the rest us us battle starvation.

"It is both a time for repentance and a time for thanks," intones the mayor.

Then he reads the list of past District 14 victors. In four-hundred years, we have had exactly eleven. Only three are alive. The Mayor looks nervous as looks at the crowd. Getting the attention of those who have began to stare off, the Mayor introduces Bonus Redpath. Bright and bubbly as ever, Bonus Redpath trots to the podium and gives her signature, "Happy Hunger Games! And may the odds be (stress) ever in your favour!" Her green hair must be a wig because her curls have shifted slightly off-centre, looking slightly funny. She goes on a bit about how an honour it is to be in District 14, although everyone knows she's just aching to get bumped up to a better district where they have proper victors.

Through the crowd, Matt spots his younger sister when he turns around, who is chewing on her nails. A family trait. As reapings go, this one at least has a slight entertainment factor. But suddenly Matt is thinking of himself, his sister, Tide, and Cal and their countless names in those big glass balls and how the odds are not in their favours. Not compared to a lot of the others. But maybe everyone else is thinking the same thing. "But there are a thousand slips." Matt whispered it to himself on accident, only realizing it when it passed his lips.

It was time for the drawing. Bonus Redpath says as she always does, "Boys first!" and crosses to the glass ball with the girls' names. She reaches in, digs her hand deep into the ball, and pulls out not one, but three slips of paper. The crowd draws in a collective breath and then you can hear a pin drop, and Matt is feeling nauseous and so desperately hoping it is not him.

Bonus Redpath crosses back to the podium, smoothes the slips of paper, and reads out the names in a clear voice. And it is not Matt.

It's Cal and Tide.


End file.
